Milford sets high school graduations

MILFORD — The city’s two high schools will graduate on consecutive days in June, Joseph A. Foran High School on June 14 and Jonathan Law on June 15. The Board of Education approved the dates following a report from Superintendent Anna Cutaia at its April 12 meeting.

The rain date is June 16 for both schools. This was necessary because due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions.

“Because we cannot have graduation indoors due to the health restrictions and requirements of social distancing and wearing masks, etc., we do need to establish a rain date,” she said. “Hoping that Mother Nature is good to us and it doesn’t rain two nights in a row. If Mother Nature is not good to us, we would likely stagger those two graduations or have them occur at the same time.”

Board member Adam De Young asked what the plans were to maintain appropriate COVID protocols. Cutaia replied that social distancing of six feet apart for individuals not in the same family would be mandatory. Each student would be limited to two guests, and seating arrangements would have to be carefully configured.

“We will likely be using all the football field going long-wise, and we will have to include guests on the field as well as in the bleachers,” she said. “Every space that is available we will be using to provide a graduating class that can walk the stage together as opposed in separate ceremonies.”

The two graduations also will feature “high levels of security,” Cutaia said. Among the safety features will be a health checklist before guests are admitted into the ceremony, she said.

“It was so smooth last year despite all the challenges, so I feel like we’ve got good procedures in place to run a smooth graduation again,” she said.

Contributed photo Foran High School’s socially distanced 2020 graduation was split into five ceremonies for the school’s 227 graduates.